Some Kind of Wonderful (sequel to Give Me the Greenlight, Mr. Clifford)

Ch 16 - Tortuous Foreplay

I went inside to an empty house. Mom and Dad had out-partied their own teenage daughter.

As I was undressing, I heard Ryder calling my name from downstairs. He had let himself in, as he was always welcome to.

"I'm up here, Ry!" I called, quickly throwing on my shorts and t-shirt.

"I told you to let me know when you got here," he complained.

"Shit, Ry. I just got here and changed my clothes. Give a girl a minute to get settled. And why did you tell me to call if you were leaving right behind me?"

"Because I wasn't planning on stopping here."

"Well, why did you?"

"Because," he grinned at me mischievously.

"Because why?" I grinned back.

"Because I've had to watch you flirt with my friend all night and it's been driving me crazy. It's like a weird kind of ... torturous foreplay or something," he said, slowly stepping closer.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Ry. If you want to take this slow, you can't be talking like that," I scolded him, but obviously didn't mind his comment one bit.

"Right now I want to say 'fuck slow.' Who's shitty idea was that anyway?" he chuckled.

"Honestly, me, too. But I may or may not be a little drunk, so I know I shouldn't be making important decisions right now. And if I recall correctly, it was your idea, mister," I said, pointing and pushing his chest with my finger.

"Listen to you, Miss Sensible." At this point he had wrapped his arms around my waist, and mine were around his neck. "Mmm. You looked awfully hot tonight. Well, you look hot every night. And day. Do you know how long I've wanted to tell you that?"

I laughed at him, "You're insane, Irwin." Irwin. As soon as I said that name, it reminded me of my predicament. I had made it through the last several hours without thinking about it. Fuck.

"I may be insane, but you love me," he said, his lips getting closer to mine.

"Yes, I do." When it was inevitable that he was going to kiss me, I froze. I thought it was only right that I tell him that Mason kissed me, so I stopped him. "Ryder, I have to tell you something."

"Okay," he said, backing away a little bit, but still holding onto me.

"I told Mason that we were, well, I didn't really know what to tell him. I said that we came to a realization."

"A realization?" he chuckled.

"Well, how else would you describe it? Anyway, I thought I got the point across, but..." I really didn't want to tell him.

"But? Oh. He kissed you, didn't he?" Ryder could always read my mind.

I gave him an apologetic look and nodded. "It was quick and no big deal really. But I wasn't not going to tell you."

"You mean to tell me, you told him about us and he kissed you anyway? What a dick. It doesn't surprise me, though. That's why I keep warning you, Kate." Yep, he was pissed.

"Honestly, Ryder, it was nothing. He's just full of himself, you know? We both already knew that." Maybe I shouldn't have said anything.

"That's an understatement. So, did you kiss him back?"

"Of course not. Like I said, it was quick. I wasn't expecting it at all, and didn't even have time to respond and push him away. I'm sorry. It wasn't even worth bringing up, but I didn't want to keep it from you."

"You know what? You're right. I don't even care. I mean, I care, but there's no sense in making a big deal about it. I'm the one who told you to not cancel the date. Can we just change the subject?"

Relieved, I said, "Gladly. So, I don't mean to rush you off, but I came home because I'm exhausted."

"I wish I could stay with you," he pouted. He was hot when he pouted. Hell, he was hot no matter what he did.

"Yeah, well, even though Dad has given us his blessing to get married, he really would kick your ass if he found you in bed with me."

Ryder groaned, pulling me closer to him. "Don't talk about me being in bed with you, baby." Then he did it. He put his lips on mine without warning.

Shocked and scared to death at first, I froze for a second. I felt him start to pull away, but I grabbed onto him, not allowing him to break the kiss. I relaxed and went with my instincts, kissing him back, following his lead. Though it wasn't our official first kiss, this one was so much more important. This one was us allowing ourselves to feel freely and not hold back. It was both passionate and tender, cautious and carefree. When it was over, my legs could hardly hold me up.

Neither of us said anything for the longest time. We stood there holding each other, staring into each other's eyes. It wasn't uncomfortable at all. I could have stayed in that moment forever. However, we were interrupted by the sound of my loud ass brother barging through the front door.

"Straight to bed, Xander," Dad told him. He complained all the way to his room. Then Dad yelled, "Katesby, Ryder, we're home." As if we didn't figure that out.

"Well, you need to get in bed, too," Ryder said, leading me to the bed. He tucked me in, planting kisses on my forehead, cheek, and finally a sweet kiss on my lips. "You're coming over tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, I'll be there. Just let me know when.'

"Okay, I'll call you. Goodnight, Kate."

"Goodnight, Ry."

"I love you," we said in unison and laughed at each other.

"Oh," he said, turning at the door. "What did you think of that movie?"

"It was, um, appropriate. And yes, I cried."

"Me, too," he snickered, and continued out the door, shutting it behind him.

I wasn't surprised at all.